Aljamain Sterling says fighter pay 'not that bad'

[Wild]

Aljamain Sterling might be turning into a company man.

"The pay is definitely not what it is unless you're the champ or a guy that's been around the sport for a very, very, very long time and you can make a lot of money," said Sterling back in September. "I still think I have a very promising future, but just doing the math on how much I fight, how often I fight per year, there's no way I'm gonna be able to make a significant amount of money where I can put it aside to do something when I'm done. You kind of see where I'm doing the math that it's not adding up. I would have made more money taking a full-time teaching job somewhere."

This was prior to the last fight on his first UFC contract, a bout against Johnny Eduardo. Famously, Sterling opted to fight out his contract rather than immediately re-sign with the UFC so he could pursue his full value in free agency. After submitting Eduardo, Sterling said he wanted "a bank account that reflects me being a pro athlete" and mentioned displeasure that the unproven Sage Northcutt was making significantly more than him despite him being on the cusp of title contention.

Well now Sterling is singing a different tune. Yesterday at the fan Q&A preceding the UFC Fight Night 89 weigh-ins, Sterling was asked his thoughts on the current state of UFC fighter pay in light of reports that Zuffa may be selling the UFC for $4 billion.

"It's not that bad. I think when you understand the whole landscape of how the structure works - the payment system - I think it makes more sense in terms of, there's like a hierarchy kind of thing where you kind of got to pay your dues. A lot of guys think you're almost supposed to just get stuff but you've got to put in the work, you've got to lay the foundations. Just like any other job, you want a raise you've got to put in the work and you've got to show that you're deserving and what you bring to the table and all kinds of other stuff to show that you're worthy of so and so pay scale."

LINK: Aljamain Sterling changes his tune, says fighter pay is 'not that bad'

 

[TheEmperorRises]

How I imagine his contract negotiations with the UFC went...

 

[Ghost Bro]

Sounds like Caraway beat him down

 

[Lukewarm Carl]

View: https://twitter.com/FunkMaster_UFC/status/744308685116104704

 

[Qat]

He got a FOX-deal out of his new contract did he not?

 

[Pitbull9]

He got a FOX-deal out of his new contract did he not?

It would appear he did. Either way I don't think it was click bait

 

[Ghost Bro]

I'm confused, would like Aljo to kind of clear this up if he's reading this. Obviously changing opinion is not a criminal offence, especially if he managed to get a better contract...just curious as to how much pressure was put on him to say something like that..considering it sounds very different from what he used to say..ofcourse the context in which he said it is important, and I don't really have time to research this right now...so what was the Q&A question that prompted this response?

Its obviously understandable to want to be a bit neutral, considering this was a UFC Q&A (can't shit on the host)....just want to hear more from Aljo on this...so if you're reading Aljo...let us know man.

 

[KWingJitsu]

Hmmmmm...... I would think he has an issue with "not that bad" is not the same as "changing his tune".
Maybe 30+30 is "not that bad" to him... ?

 

[kneeblock]

The commentary job seems to have been the bonus he was looking for.

Honestly I can't fault anything that comes out of a fighter's mouth in this hostile labor environment.

 

[Jesus X]

Everytime I look at him I think of the fresh price of bel aire

 

[Jesus X]

Hmmmmm...... I would think he has an issue with "not that bad" is not the same as "changing his tune".
Maybe 30+30 is "not that bad" to him... ?

That 30/30 is like 18 k after taxes and expenses that sounds like pretty crappy pay nurses and longshoreman with out a degree almost make that money.

 

[Wild]

Say he wins 2 out of 3 fights per year. That's 150k in win/show money. Then say he bonuses 1 out of 3 times. That's another $50k. Then say he's making $75k/yr in FOX money. Say $100k/year between Reebok & individual sponsors. $25k in ancillary money like seminars, appearances, etc.

That's $400k/year. Not too bad.

 

[Qat]

Say he wins 2 out of 3 fights per year. That's 150k in win/show money. Then say he bonuses 1 out of 3 times. That's another $50k. Then say he's making $75k/yr in FOX money. Say $100k/year between Reebok & individual sponsors. $25k in ancillary money like seminars, appearances, etc.

That's $400k/year. Not too bad.

 

[KWingJitsu]

That 30/30 is like 18 k after taxes and expenses that sounds like pretty crappy pay nurses and longshoreman with out a degree almost make that money.

True.... 30/30 is nothing. Maybe he felt that way because he asked for 'more' and got 'more'.... but that ain't shit at his level.

U Fight Cheap needs to increase their bottom line pay for the fighters to a higher percentage of revenue. .

 

[Papi Chingon]

Say he wins 2 out of 3 fights per year. That's 150k in win/show money. Then say he bonuses 1 out of 3 times. That's another $50k. Then say he's making $75k/yr in FOX money. Say $100k/year between Reebok & individual sponsors. $25k in ancillary money like seminars, appearances, etc.

That's $400k/year. Not too bad.

Though this doesn't seem so bad (hypothetical numbers), his job is to fight first. The money he gets paid for fighting should reflect that, and additional money should be secondary. He is not peyton manning, michael Jordan or tiger woods.

 

[Wild]

Though this doesn't seem so bad (hypothetical numbers), his job is to fight first. The money he gets paid for fighting should reflect that, and additional money should be secondary. He is not peyton manning, michael Jordan or tiger woods.

Agreed. Can't argue that my man.

 

[KWingJitsu]

Say he wins 2 out of 3 fights per year. That's 150k in win/show money. Then say he bonuses 1 out of 3 times. That's another $50k. Then say he's making $75k/yr in FOX money. Say $100k/year between Reebok & individual sponsors. $25k in ancillary money like seminars, appearances, etc.

That's $400k/year. Not too bad.

I can almost guarantee he's making nowhere near 75K for his part time/occassional analysis on FOX....
As for sponsorships, he's making 5K from Reebok. lol.
Other sponsors & appearance money? Who knows... but I'm sure $400K is highly "optimistic" (rainbows) for him.
Maybe in the future. Not now.
Besides... he was talking UFC pay which at 30/30 is still atrocious.

 

[Lukewarm Carl]

U Fight Cheap needs to increase their bottom line pay for the fighters to a higher percentage of revenue. .

A little Devil's Advocate moment here... Do they need to pay more? I know that we want the fighters to be paid more or at least have more consistent pay that they can depend on but does the UFC really need to pay more?

They still have boatloads of fighters dreaming to be the UFC champ and are willing to undercut each other for an opportunity to fight in the octagon. So from this perspective they don't need to do a damn thing other than make sure that the mouths at the top are being fed really well to keep the dream alive for everyone clawing their way up to try to get off of the undercard.

 

[Rambo John J]

The commentary job seems to have been the bonus he was looking for.

Honestly I can't fault anything that comes out of a fighter's mouth in this hostile labor environment.

play ball or sit the bench

 

[Wild]

I can almost guarantee he's making nowhere near 75K for his part time/occassional analysis on FOX....
As for sponsorships, he's making 5K from Reebok. lol.
Other sponsors & appearance money? Who knows... but I'm sure $400K is highly "optimistic" (rainbows) for him.
Maybe in the future. Not now.
Besides... he was talking UFC pay which at 30/30 is still atrocious.

You don't think he may get $10-$15k per FOX appearance? That doesn't seem outlandish to me but maybe I just don't know that market.